East of Constantinople, West of Shanghai

Two games for 50th birthday

Like most history and gaming buffs, I have been a long-time fan of Osprey Books, and was quite surprised – and delighted – when they started publishing games too a few years back.
My friend Andrea Sfiligoi of Ganesha Gamesis one of their authors, which is to me a sort of quality guarantee – if they work with Andrea they are my kind of gaming company.

And right now I’ve found out that this year, barring disasters, I’ll be splurging on a few titles from Osprey Games, because they have quite obviously been designed specifically for me… and one will be out in time for my birthday.

And now it’s true, I don’t honestly know where I’ll be on my next birthday, because there’s still ten weeks to go, and if I’ll be able to afford to buy me games, or if I’ll be living in a shelter for the poor, but what the hell, as Blondie used to sing, Dreaming is free.

And just look at these beauties…

The Lost Expedition

Legendary explorer Percy Fawcett marched deep into the Amazon in search of El Dorado. He was never seen again. Your team is following in his footsteps, but in searching for riches you must be careful not to lose the greatest treasure of all – your life.

Make the best of your food, your ammunition and your health, as you plunge deep into the jungle. Choose your path carefully to ensure you’re ready for the pitfalls which may occur. Play solo or co-operatively to survive the expedition, or play head-to-head to see which group can reach the lost city first.

From award-winning designer Peer Sylvester and acclaimed comic artist Garen Ewing, The Lost Expedition is a game of hard choices on the road to El Dorado.

Players: 1-5
Ages: 14+
Playing Time: 30-50 minutes

Shahrazad

A solo and cooperative tile-laying game. Players will help Shahrazad tell stories to pass another night by playing tiles featuring unique takes on iconic fairy-tales to construct the best story.

Each turn players will play a single tile, then draw a tile, building a folk-tale tableau. With 24 oversized, fully illustrated tiles in a deluxe package Shahrazad is a beautiful gift package for couples, or parents and children. Placing certain story types together will grant players more points, but telling a story in the wrong order will drastically limit their options.